Man pleads guilty to misdemeanor sex-offense charge

A Guatemalan man who recently pleaded guilty in Pitkin County Court to a misdemeanor sex offense is scheduled to be sentenced on April 1.

Maximo Roberto Lemus-Garcia, 36, described in court records as a construction worker, also faces possible deportation. He has been held in the Pitkin County Jail under a $20,000 cash-only bond since his arrest 14 weeks ago.

On March 11, Pitkin County Judge Erin Fernandez-Ely ordered a psychosexual evaluation for Lemus-Garcia, who as part of his guilty plea to unlawful sexual contact will be required to register as a sex offender. The public defender representing him said in court last week that Lemus-Garcia welcomes deportation and does not wish to remain in the United States.

Pitkin County Sheriff’s Deputy Renee Rayton arrested Lemus-Garcia on Dec. 8 following a complaint from a woman living in a house where he rented a room. She told deputies that Lemus-Garcia touched her inappropriately as she was trying to sleep. In her half-awake state, she initially thought the man touching her was her husband, according to an arrest affidavit.

After being confronted by the woman, Lemus-Garcia “shrugged his shoulder and left the room as though nothing happened,” the affidavit says. Frightened and upset, she phoned 911 to report the incident, the document states.

Court records show that Lemus-Garcia is married. Under the arrangement with the court, he will be placed on probation, but won’t be required to participate in the state’s strict program called Sex Offender Intensive Supervision Probation.